By Rana Moharram
Twenty years after it first appeared on TV, Friends is still the quintessential show about being twenty-something. It may lack smartphones and drug-fuelled clubbing, but perhaps that’s why it still holds up. It tells a familiar story; one of working hard, attempting success and trying to scrape enough together to eat dinner with people we actually like. I’m sure many of us have watched each and every episode and loved them enough to keep following the cast’s interviews on Ellen DeGeneres and Oprah talk shows. But here are 15 “Friends” fun facts that will make all of you, die hard fans, love them even more!
1. “The One Where No One’s Ready” takes place entirely in Monica’s apartment because the show didn’t have a large enough budget for guest stars or additional sets.
2. Courtney Cox is actually older than David Schwimmer, despite playing his younger sister.
3. Ross and Rachel weren’t meant to be the central romance of the series. Their storyline was developed because of David Schwimmer’s and Jennifer Anniston’s chemistry.
4. In the first season, each of the main six cast members earned $20,000 per episode.
5. In 1997, they negotiated an unprecedented salary increase of $100,000 per episode. It was the first time in TV history that cast members had united to revisit their packages.
6. By the final season, they each took-home $1,000,000 per episode.
7.Ross’s role was especially written for David Schwimmer.
8. Lisa Kudrow hated playing the guitar at first but later on admitted that her favourite song was the infamous “Smelly Cat”.
9. The entire show was filmed in front of live audience – except for cliffhangers.
10. Lisa Kudrow’s pregnancy was written into the show, but Courtney Cox’s was not. (Season 10)
11. For the opening credits in “The One After Vegas”, everyone was given the last name “Arquette” in honor of Courtney Cox and David Arquette’s marriage.
12. In season six, Bruce Willis made a complimentary appearance on the show after losing a bet to Mathew Perry.
13. The cast had a huddle before every single episode.
14. Many Cafes were named ‘Central Perk’ after the famous coffeehouse from the show.
15. Last year, “Friends” turned 10, which makes Ben 20, Monica and Chandler’s twins 10, Emma 12 and Phoebe’s triplets 17.